


Have you ever Heard of the Cave of Being?

by Bootleg_Pokestar_Studios



Category: Pocket Monsters | Pokemon (Main Video Game Series), Pocket Monsters | Pokemon - All Media Types, Pocket Monsters: Black 2 & White 2 | Pokemon Black 2 & White 2 Versions
Genre: Cheren can’t stand his students sometimes, Folklore telling, Gen, Honestly most of the characters listed don’t play a major role, Story within a Story
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-10
Updated: 2019-04-10
Packaged: 2020-01-10 23:48:28
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,051
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18418430
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Bootleg_Pokestar_Studios/pseuds/Bootleg_Pokestar_Studios
Summary: A small class of Unovan students is on a field trip to Floccesy Ranch. When night time falls, their teacher decides to tell them the story of the Sinnoh journalist who went in search of a cave that served as a connection to both Sinnoh and Unova.A simple somewhat older fic that was made for a Pokémon folklore contest





	Have you ever Heard of the Cave of Being?

There really was nothing like the the jovial sight of a field filled with happy children. You’d really have to be a cold hearted person to not crack a smile at their blissful joy. It’s one of the main reasons people could ever even consider becoming a teacher. Floccesy Ranch was busy with unbound energy thanks to the group of elementary children who were there for a class field trip. After a long day of learning about the ranch itself they had free range to go and interact with the wide variety of Pokémon that live there. With a good sized forest right on the outskirts, there was much more for them to see than just Mareep and a few Herdier. 

Mr. Stewart had taken his opportunity to relax on a wooden bench in front of the barn. It provided the perfect view of his class to keep an eye on them. In all honesty his Pokémon where doing all the heavy lifting in terms of watching the kids. Making sure no one unnecessarily angered any of the Pokémon, wild or domesticated. It was an important precaution to take as most of them didn’t have a Pokémon of their own and none of them were seasoned trainers. Mr. Stewart sighed in relief. The hard part of his day was finally over. While his job was always a fun experience he couldn’t lie and say it was easy to keep a class of fifteen in check. 

He could feel his eyes getting heavier by the second from his weariness. Slowly his eyes shut and drifted into what could be only described as a “mid-sleep”. With a long night to soon come ahead his mind made the brilliant decision of taking a nap when he needed to watch his class. Surely his Pokémon were reliable enough to make sure there were no injuries. They better be, the money from that lawsuit alone would make him a homeless man. 

Mr. Stewart was taken out of his shortly-lived nap when the up beat manly-man owner of Floccesy Ranch Herald sat right besides him. 

Herald bellowed with his usual mellow tone, “How’s life been treating you Cheren? It’s been ages since we’ve seen each other!”

“It’s only been a couple of weeks sir...” Cheren replied with weary sincerity, “Oh but life has been treating me very well in these recent times.”

“I can see. You’ve been so much less on edge than usual. Your new job as a teacher must be rewarding for someone like yourself.”

“It sure is. I do miss my old days of battling though. Thankfully Alder was kind enough to offer me the position as the new gym leader to replace Lenora’s absence.” 

“Oh that’s right! You’re gonna be gym leader soon aren’t cha? Must be rather exciting to uphold such a powerful position.”

Cheren sneakily hushed Herald’s boisterous voice that was currently ringing in his ear drums, “There’s more to it than social standing you know. It will offer a great learning opportunity for my students as well. Seeing a true battle between trainer and gym leader in all sorts of skill brackets will be nothing less than a wonderful teaching opportunity. After all, it is my own gym so I can do whatever I want with it.” 

“You can say that again kid! Haha! How far you have come in such a short time!”

Herald wrestled Cheren into a less deadly version of a chokehold and gave him a powerful noogie ruining the hair he spent tedious hours brushing into perfect formation. 

Cheren was laughing as heartily as Herald while discreetly trying to save his hair from further torment, “H-Hey! Stop that! You know how long I spend getting my hair ready!” 

“It’s all in good fun kid! I know you’re more stuck up than most but there’s no need to be a downer.” Herald chortled. 

“Oh shut up you.” Cheren chuckled, replying with a playful punch to the arm, “While I have your attention, mind if I ask for a request you?”

“Hm? A request? If keep up these requests you might end up owing me even more cash than you do already.”

Cheren stiffened in response, nervously twiddling his thumbs, “Sir I know I’ve been asking so much of you for this trip a-and I really should have brought this up earlier-“

“I’m just messing with ya kid! Don’t get your fancy socks in a bind, of course you can ask! And free of charge to boot.” He said merrily, grabbing Cheren’s shoulder and shaking him out of his self induced anxiety. 

He sighed in great relief, “Thank you sir... Anyways, would you be okay if you let me and the class stay a bit past dark for some campfire activities? I’m sure they would absolutely love to spend some of their night underneath the stars.”

“Of course! It’s the least I could do for your help getting my ranch on its feet. I even have a nice open area you could set up camp. Very roomy and the Mareep should stay out of your finely combed hair.” 

Cheren’s eyes glistened as he took a light bow in thanks.  
“Thank you so much sir, your understanding is greatly appreciated. Now nightfall will be coming soon, would you be okay with helping me set up now?” 

“HaHa! Always so formal aren’t you Cheren? Of course I would be! Gives this old man something to do instead of stand around all day.” 

Cheren was suddenly lifted up when Herald grabbed his arm and dragged him away to fully prepare for the night. Soon enough Cheren found himself running ahead of Herald in panic when he realized just how close it was to night fall. All Herald could do was laugh it off. He picked up his pace to catch up with the all to worried teacher. 

[c]A couple hours later passed by and the moon was starting to make its trip in front of the sun for nighttime to commence. 

Each of the students has finally calmed down from a long day of activities. They helped Cheren and Herald set up a large picnic table full of all sorts of foods that where perfect for an outside meal. But the main thing that stood out in the eyes of all the kids where nothing less than the huge bag of marshmallows which laid comfortably in Cheren’s large bag which once held all the food they were currently eating. The dinner itself must have only lasted a few short minutes due to everyone quickly eating their meals to get to the marshmallows faster.  
Before anyone knew it, each and every student was already out searching for fire wood to start the fire. It was easy to get kids to work at lighting speeds if you could catch their interest. 

They were all having a blast by the fire, talking with their friends about this that and the other thing. Once they had dried out their supply of marshmallows, Cheren took up and called out to the class. 

“Alright everyone! Who is ready for some campfire stories?”

The class roared in excitement, this was their second favorite part of camping, right before marshmallows. 

Cheren puffed out his chest and widened his eyes in an attempt to look more enthusiastic than exhausted, “Okay so... before I tell my story, let’s let a couple of you guys tell us a story you know about.”

“You have a story for us Mr. Stewart? Can’t we listen to that first?” One student questioned. 

“No no, mine is on the longer side. By the time we got done with it, we would already have to head back to the hotel.” Cheren softly grumbled. 

“Okay then let me go! Please please please please!”

A short energetic little boy was bouncing up and down his hand high in the air. He was the smallest kid in the class, yet also one of the oldest. His Pokémon Ekans resting on his lap and around his waist, trying to take a small nap with very little success. 

Cheren buried his face into the palms of his hands. Of course he most lose cannon child would want to speak first, “Oh dear... Yes Nate you can go first. But please, be careful with what you say.” 

“Okay! Get ready for a spooky one!” Nate sang cheerfully. 

Cheren braced himself for what was to come, as he was sure it wasn’t going to be the most child friendly thing. 

Nate smiled as wide as his cheeks would allow him to, “I remember this one story my dad used to tell me a lot when I was a smaller boy. There is an ancient castle buried deep under the sand after years and years of... sand. In this castle supposedly lays a super rare treasure! And this treasure was a super rare Pokémon egg that had a Larvesta inside. But! The egg was protected by these super highly trained Sigilygh that the king put there to protect what they believed was the upcoming sun god. But then the egg never hatched after a bunch of time, so it’s still there! And now they say that if you manage to get to the deepest part of the castle that you should never touch the egg or else...”

“Or else what?” Hugh stuttered, slightly shaken up but still curious as to what happens next.

“Or else they’ll RIP YOU TO SHREDS UNTIL YOU BLEED OUT TO DEATH!” Nate jumped up from his seat and shouted at pretty much everyone that was in close proximity to him. His Ekans woke up in a shock. Accidentally squeezing Nate’s sides, forcing him to sit down right after.

“B-But why would they do that?” The girl next to him asked. 

“Probably as a sacrifice. I’d image human flesh can be a tasty snack-“

“Okay Nate that is more than enough from you. Kindly stop talking.” Cheren exasperated. 

“... Did I do something wrong?” He questioned with the upmost sincerity. 

“What did I say about saying such things Nate?”

“Only say it if you won’t do it to someone else.”

“NO! I told you, you can’t be saying stuff like that in school at all-“

Another kid sheepishly raised his hand, “May I go next Mr. Stewart?”

Cheren sighed in relief, good ol’ Jonny was a fine kid, “Go right on ahead.”

“I also remember reading this story online once. It’s some old myth from Johto about a Pokémon called Unknown. I think it was about this kid who got trapped in one of their hallucinations and was later found with decapitated their all their limbs cut off-“

Cheren hastily shushed the kid as soon as he hear what he was going to say, “NOPE. I know what story you’re speaking of and by law I am not allowed to let you continue that story-“ 

Before he could even finish his sentence, another kid jumped into the conversation, “Mr. Stewart! I remember an article I read about a man who wore a dark grey cloth on their head and ran around chopping of Pokémon heads and then ate them right front of their trainers!”

“Catrina please let’s not go over that-“

Even the normally shy kid was now in on the conversation, “I know about the tale of a shiny Trapinch who kidnapped a little girl after the brother kicked the Pokémon out of the house because it was slowly killing her via malnutrition.”

It wasn’t long before the entire class was talking about all the weird and gruesome stories they have heard over the years. Cheren couldn’t believe his ears. What sort of disturbed children was he watching over? The noise only got louder and louder, and the actual conversations kept getting worse and worse. Cheren was never the type to yell, but this was becoming way to much for him to handle any other way. 

“EVERYONE STOP!” Cheren screeched. 

And with that, the class fell silent. Not even a whisper to kids who where sitting next to one other. 

“Remind me to make sure I guide the stories for now own.” Cheren coughed in an rather uncomfortable manner, “Now that... that happened... who wants to hear my story now? I promise it is a lot less violent than all of these.”

Everyone raised their hands, still not willing to test the waters as to what Cheren will and will not allow. 

“Wonderful. Now, have any of you heard of a place called the Cave of Being?” Cheren inquired. 

Each of the kids looked around one other trying to figure out what this mystery place was. None of them seem to have the answer to his question. 

“To put things simply, the Cave of Being is a large cave found on route 20, right next to Floccesy Town. It’s a special cave that is said to be able to show someone their true inner selfs.”

“Their true inner selves? What is that supposed to mean?” Nate asked. 

“It’s kind of like getting to know yourself better. Sometimes there are things about yourself that you don’t even know. This cave would supposedly show you that part of your that is hidden.” 

“Sounds really scary...” Nate shuttered. 

“I would like to learn more about myself. It would be cool to see what a cave thought of me! Could we possibly go on the way back home?” Hugh requested. 

“Afraid not. There are simply too much of us.”

Hugh pouted angrily upon hearing the news. Who knew such a small little kid could hold so much rage. 

“How could a cave even tell you about yourself to begin with?” One of the children asks. 

“A very good question!” Cheren brimmed, “You see, according to the rumors, the three legendary Pokémon Mesprit, Azelf and Uxie live in that very cave and will tell you themselves what they see. Anyone here happen to know what these three Pokémon are?”

“I do.” A stern but gentle little girl raised her hand with all the zest of a running Zebstrika, “Mesprit, Azelf, and Uxie are the three lake guardians from Sinnoh. They were the Pokémon that gave birth to the human spirit. They each had a special role in teaching people skills. Specifically, Mesprit taught people how to feel emotions, Azelf gave people the willpower to work, and Uxie gave humans the knowledge to solve problems.” 

“Very in depth Sally. I see you know quite a lot about them.” Cheren gleefully said. 

Sally smiled with confidence, “My parents moved here from Sinnoh, so I know a lot about Sinnoh myths. It’s also said these Pokémon can take away knowledge, willpower, and emotions if you disturb them.” 

Cheren smiled, happy he was getting somewhere, “Interesting fact Sally. Now, who wants to hear about how this cave was discovered?”

Sally harshly interrupted Cheren, “But your claims don’t make sense.” 

Cheren groaned almost out of pure instinct. Looks like he spoke too soon. 

“How could the lake guardians be living in that cave? They all live in Sinnoh in three difference lakes. Surely they don’t move around THAT often.” 

“Yes I am sure that the Pokémon aren’t constantly on the move. However there is a theory out there that claims their could be more than one of those Pokémon.”

Sally looked utterly confused, “More than one Mesprit, Azelf, and Uxie? How so?”

“It’s simple really. Maybe people claim that certain legendaries have one ‘copy’ of themselves, but instead that Pokémon is in fact a shiny.”

“What you’re saying is is that Pokémon like Dialga and Palkia could also have a shiny counterpart? What proof do you even have for that?” Sally rebutted. 

“What proof is there that there aren’t?” Cheren suggested. 

Sally grumbled, “... Fine I guess you have a point.” 

“Now, is everyone has everything out of their system, I can tell you all the story of how the Cave of Being came to be. Who is up to listen?”

The class perked up and cheered for Cheren to finally start telling the story. 

“Ahem. Once upon a time, about 500 years ago, Unova had officially opened up their doors to the rest of the outside world after being isolated for quite some time...”

[ci]...

[i]Many other regions from around the world were more than interested in exploring Unova. There was a mysterious vibe to the region due to its strong isolation. All sorts of rumors were being spread about it. Some good, some not so good. 

[i]It would be important to understand that at the time, Sinnoh and Unova had a very sticky relationship. Many of the people where not too fond of one other due to their extremely different beliefs and traditions. For many Sinnoh folks it was difficult coming to Unova because of the backlash from natives, as well as vice versa. 

[i]One particular person had a great interest in testing out something they have heard. A young Sinnoh born journalist had set out the the long boat ride to Unova’s very own shores. They had gotten word about a mystical cave that could lead right back to Sinnoh simply by entering. And even more importantly than that, the cave was said to be closely related to the three lake guardians of Sinnoh. It was a life time opportunity if the rumors spoke the truth and because no one else seemed to want to try and look, he was jumping at the opportunity given to him. 

[i]The trip was long and boring. The journalist didn’t know how much longer his supply of sudokus could last him. Thankfully for him, the ship arrived on shore and the employees were quick to unload the ship for the ride back. 

[i]He arrived in the one of Unova’s most famous cities, the one and only Castelia City. Even 500 years ago Castelia was considered a brimming city. He was rather disappointed to find out he could not stay for long, as he needed to make sure he made it to his next boat ride to Virbank. 

[i]The journalist wasted no time getting to their next ship. He was lucky enough to arrive before the line grew to unbearable lengths. It was a short matter of time before he was face to face with the man who was running the ticket booth. 

[i]”Good morning sir.” The man running the ticket booth said with an upbeat tone, “How may I help you today?”

[i]”Hello there kind sir, I am here to get on a boat to Virbank.”

[i]”Very well. Do you have your ticket?”

[i]”Indeed I do.”

[i]The journalist pulled out their ticket and showed it to the man behind the desk.

[i]The man careful examined the ticket, and the punched a hole into it as a sign of acceptance, ”Looks official to me, welcome aboard the ship! What brings you here to Virbank? You certainly don’t look like you’re from around here.”

[i]”In that case you are quite right. I traveled here all the way from Sinnoh. I heard rumors of a cave that could lead someone from here to Sinnoh and I simply had to see if it was real for myself.”

[i]The man had to make an conscious effort to hide his laughter, “Really now? You want to find some magical cave that can oh so magically transfer you from here to there? Why not just stay in Sinnoh if you wanted to go is bad.”

[i]His stinging sarcasm left quite the mark, but he wasn’t going to back down after already spending a fortune to get there. He walked away without a second word. No need to get his hopes down as soon as he arrived. He had found a comfortable seat at the port were he could yet again play the waiting game to wait again on yet another boat. It wasn’t an ideal situation, but nothing that wasn’t manageable. Or so he thought until the loud obnoxious laughter coming from the man who was running the booth was nothing less than upfront for the world to see. The journalist was certain the man was talking about him to the little friend group he was building up in that secluded area of the port. He tried his absolute best to ignore it and convince himself that he was talking about something completely different. Lady Luck must have been on his side that way, because his little coping mechanism worked like a charm. 

[i]It was only a matter of time before his next ship finally arrived at his port and was ready to pick people up to their next stop. He had overheard how the ships were moving at a much quicker rate than usual thanks to all of this oncoming tourism. Couldn’t have been more thankful for it as well, who wants to spend all day waiting? 

[i]The commanders of the ship were speedily getting people onboard assumingely to keep up with the large hustle of people who where just as impatient as he was. The boat left almost as soon as it came in with no problems to be seen. The journalist could admit one thing about the natives of Unova, they sure did know how to get work done efficiently. 

[i]The roaring motorboat chucked ahead at lightning fast speeds... well for its time it was a rather fast boat. Multiple oceanic Pokémon swam by the boat, enjoying all of the attention the passengers on board were giving them. A large school of Basculin had taken up residence with the ship in hopes of finding food along with it. The journalist had never seen such Pokémon, you never found these Pokémon anywhere else in the world it seemed. Flocks of Swanna and small living islands made up of Frillish and Jellicent. His joy simply couldn’t be contained. So many amazing Pokémon he had never seen before! What wasn’t there to be excited about?

[i]The journalist was so caught up in watching the Pokémon from the ship that he failed to notice the group of people from the ticket booth approach him. 

[i]”Enjoying eyeballin’ the waters there boy?”

[i]The sudden scratchy voice of the male standing next to him nearly made the journalist jump out of his skin. 

[i]”Uh, um... yea?” The journalist said, flustered with confusion. 

[i]They bursted out in a chorus of laughter, leaving him in a complete state of disarray. 

[i]The scratchy voices male was soaking up every moment of ”BWAHAHAHA! Holy mother of Zekrom kid, who gets so defensive over a stupid question? I won’t judge you for having a weird fetish man.”

[i]”F-Fetish?!” The journalist retorted, “I am just looking at the Pokémon, what does that have to do with anything.”

[i]”The look on your face sure did tell a different story.”

[i]The journalist’s hid his face in his hands upon the mere thought of how he must of looked to the people around him. The group howled out in laughter. What a soft boned kid they all thought, laughing all the more at his embarrassment.

[i]One of the girls who was clinging onto her man piped up, “Say, isn’t this the person who’s lookin’ for some magical cave or whatever Kevin was talkin’ about?”

[i]”Oh yea this is him!” The man the girl was clinging to scoffed, “This is that psycho Sinnoh boy he was rambling about.”

[i]”Idiot don’t know what he’s talking about. Must be one of those crazy myths y’all eat up like a starving child when they get their hands on a dinner.” 

[i]The entire group got a good laugh out of that last remark. The journalist was being overwhelmed with all of the negative attention he was getting. Any more time spent there would have driven him insane. He pushed his way out of the semi-circle they had formed around him and bolted for the back of the boat. Their voices shifting into muffled gibberish as he ran to the farthest side of the ship which was surprisingly empty compared to the rest of the ship. It was a real shame he had to move too, it was the perfect spot for watching all the Pokémon before the ship scared them all away. In the end it was back to burning up his supply of sudoku until he reached shore. 

[i]After what must of felt of felt like an eternity, the ship had reached its port located in Virbank. The journalist was one of the first to leave recovering the pep in his step in search for the cave he had been looking for. He entered a strange place where nature and human agriculture lived in perfect harmony. Even more Pokémon he had never seen before roamed the streets along with the humans that built them. It wasn’t something you saw every day, but now wast the time for gawking. He could gawk at a later date when he finished what he had come to do. 

[i]There was a slight problem though. He had no clue were to start looking. All he knew is that he needed to find a body of water down the southwestern most part of Unova. Which now that he thought of it, was the most vague and unclear directions anyone could have ever given. The best idea he had was to ask around for directions to a river or lake of some sort. Surely someone would have to know where he could find one. And sure enough they did know. Didn’t help if no one would even give him directions. 

[i]He must of asked every person he came across if they knew where he could find a river. But as soon as he mentioned the cave, he would immediately laugh him off as some sort of strange prankster. He didn’t take into account of how many new and unique ways he could be called an idiot, but there he is learning the things he couldn’t have cared less about. It took him awhile to click together the idea that, just maybe, he would leave out the detail about the magical transportation cave. What do you know, as soon as he did, someone was finally willing to give him directions. Just like at all if his efforts were for not when he learned that their was a lame right outside of the town’s perimeters. Despite the disappointment that he could have been using his time for better things than being called a slew of insults, he was more than excited to start doing the very thing he came to do. Look for a cave he didn’t know existed or not. 

[i]Running all the way to the outskirts of town he was soon met face to face with a huge lake, the perfect size for a cave to be expertly hidden in. He already had his plan of attack. If what he heard was true and there really was a connection between this cave and the lake guardians, all he had to do was search the bottom of the lake for the hidden cave! As simple as that. The only problem being how difficult it would be to to search the entire area of the lake’s bottom floor from its size. He took out his trusty Pokémon friend, a Lumineon. Its shiny body was perfect at illuminating the dark water depths along with the impressive ability to travel pretty much anywhere as long as it was in water. They proved to be the perfect partner for his hunt. All he needed as to connect his oxygen tank and he was ready for some lake diving.

[i]He spent all day in those waters and found nothing. The sun had hid itself from the world behind the moon’s shadow showing the millions of stars that’s covered the skies. His poor Lumineon was tuckered out from all the swimming it had to do. The journalist stroked the Pokémon’s beautiful shining coat while it fed on the food it was generously provided. His head was thumping from the underwater pressure that felt as if it was crushing his head. He couldn’t even get himself to eat from the headache it gave him. He was down on his luck, the world wasn’t being a kind fellow to him today. It will have been rather nice to not have to spend more than one day looking but life doesn’t always work like that. 

[i]”I’m going to sleep Lumineon. You probably should as well. We’ll... we’ll look tomorrow...”

[i]His brain didn’t give him a second change to stay up a bit longer as he shut his eyes and slept the hardest he’s has in a long while. He had gotten a fairly decent amount of shut eye before being bolted awake by the sound of his Lumineon panicked. 

[i]”Lumineon! What seems to be the matter?”

[i]The neon Pokémon sang a panicked song to their trainer before swimming off down the river. All he caught was the shape of some sort of Pokémon he couldn’t make out. But his Lumineon seemed determined to follow whatever it must have seen. He followed suit in worry for the well-being of his close partner. Lumineon would occasionally take a quick peak behind them to make sure the journalist was following before putting its attention back on swimming. The two of the continued to travel before hitting the banks of a waterfall. The sound of the water crashing down into the river below was a relaxing sensation to the ears. If only his throbbing head would let him enjoy such a tranquil experience. Lumineon pulled on the leg of his pant and offered hims a ride up the waterfall on their back. 

[i]”You sure Lumineon? It looks pretty high up. And you’re not used to using the move Waterfall yet. Why would you even want to go up there?” 

[i]The Pokémon was adamant about its decision. The determined look on its face couldn’t be ignored so easily. The journalist gave in to the Pokémon’s temptations. He had his full trust in his life long partner. Using all of its might, Lumineon scaled the waterfall whilst carrying the trainer with it. He took out their Pokéball and gave them a chance to rest up. He was more than surprised to find a cave resting on top this random cliff side. Did Lumineon somehow know this was here all along? Or was it that mysterious figure it was chasing down the river. 

[i]He entered the cave and was almost certain he had finally found what he was looking for. The puddles of water in the cave strongly resembled the patterns found in all the ancient textbooks describing the staying place of the lake guardians. There were three chambers, all of which he assumed represented the three legendary Pokémon. He couldn’t believe his eyes! There was only one way to test if his assumptions were correct and that was by some exploration. Stepping into the cold puddle waters certainly helped wake him up. This couldn’t have been a dream of his due to him being a light sleeper. Cold water would have woken him up instantaneously. Another chilly step affirmed his conclusion. 

[i]He noticed a yellowish figure whizz by the corner of his eye into the chamber on the left. His curiosity lead him to follow the mysterious figure. Oh boy was he happy he did so, as the very thing he saw was the legendary Pokémon Mesprit! Its celestial spirit floated above the a square puddle of water that was in the middle of the chamber. He rushed over to see if he could get a closer look but alas the Pokémon sunk into the waters. 

[i]He gazed into the puddle trying to get a closer look at the Pokémon. All he got back was his reflection. Gazing into the puddle, he heard his own mind buzzing around about many different things. He felt as if his mind was telling him something. He was sure it was Mesprit who was speaking to him, even if though he was sure they were his own thoughts. It was confusing to be sure, but he didn’t question anything about it. 

[i]“Mesprit” told him he was an insecure man to be sure, but didn’t lack in his empathy for others. Keeping his cool in tough situations and never resorting back with harsher words with no meaning behind them. It was his strength. But he was easy to discourage and took the words of others very personally. Even if he had the willpower to continue, it was clear how much it really hurt him. That was his weakness. 

[i]He was dumbfounded to be frank. Why in the world was a legendary Pokémon giving helpful advice to a random person who didn’t have much significance? He accepted it full heartedly to be sure, but he couldn’t deny how strange it felt. He wondered if he could possibly be lucky enough to encounter the other two. Wouldn’t that be something to brag about? He left the first chamber and looked at the one right next to him. There wasn’t reason not to try. 

[i]He approached the second chamber and slowly crept inside. To his absolute bewilderment, there as Uxie’s celestial spirit floating on top of the small square puddle. He attempted to approach more on the cautious side, only to see the Pokémon flee into the water. He sighed, but maybe Uxie had something they wanted to say as well. Yet again when he gazed into the water, he heard his mind bustling with thoughts. But now they where talking of a different subject. They claimed that while he may have been smart with people and socializing, he lacked a great deal in basic problem solving when the answer was not blatant. He was stuck in a metaphorical box, and it was hard for him to truly see outside of it

[i]That was... kinda rude if he was being honest. He was basically called in idiot AGAIN. Now it was by an all-knowing legendary. Sure perhaps they had a point but that doesn’t excuse anything. He shook the thought out of his head. How cared about what they had to say, he was still meeting legendary Pokémon! Chances are he didn’t have the right to complain in this scenario. 

[i]Last but not least, was the chamber on the right. It was fair to assume that Azelf was the last one there. Would they be there? Given his luck it was a possibility. He walked in with the upmost confidence in hopes of impressing the being of willpower. It didn’t seem to do much, as Azelf left more quickly than the others. Thankfully he still got a glimpse. 

[i]Curious to see how this all plays out in the end, he listened to the last of the puddles. Now his thoughts were focused on his courage. He was a strong willed man, once he had an idea he wouldn’t stop until it was done. But more often than not, his body spoke before his mind, which could be good and bad. This had set him up for a dangerous habit of putting his own mental and physical health in danger, as he would often make many regretful decisions. He would need to find his own way to work around his impulses.

[i]He backed away from the chamber and stood in the center of the cave. The only word he could use to describe his feelings at all was flabbergasted. This wasn’t just a fateful encounter, this was a ground breaking discovery. Not only did he meet all three lake guardians, he discovered that all three lake guardians were living in the same exact place! He had to go tell the world about this! It would break the world of Pokémon mythology as they knew it!

[i]He said triumphantly while stumbling like a new born Deerling. His weariness has finally caught to him. Tomorrow... tomorrow I will tell the world... he said in a tired haze has he feel right to the floor and passed out from exhaustion. 

[i]He woke up the next morning and immediately did what he said he would do. He didn’t have the guts to go back to the people of Virbank and tell them. Instead he traveled to a nearby village, a small place that was practically unheard of. While overcome with an overwhelming nervousness, he was going to stick to his guts and start out small before he went to others. As expected most of the of the people there didn’t fully trust him. He only managed to gain a small group of seven who were interested in seeing what he had to offer. 

[i]His ragtag group of followers traveled right back to the cave. The journalist gave out simple instructions. Be quite and listen very carefully to the square puddles in the middle of the chambers. If you listen hard enough, they speak to you their words of wisdom. They complied happily to his request. The poor man was shaking in his boots. What if the Pokémon didn’t say anything? What if they couldn’t hear it? There was so much that could have potentially gone wrong. 

[i]He kept his eyes glued shut, not wanting to see the disappointment on their faces. After some deadly silence, he heard the wonder filled voices of people who couldn’t believe their ears. The journalist slumped to the ground in unbounded relief. 

[i]The villagers rushed back to tell everyone what they had heard. Everyone was in awe, things like that simply never happened. They all simply had to try it at one point or another. In honor of his discovery, the village carved in three memorials to the three legendary Pokémon. 

[ic]Mesprit  
[ic]Uxie  
[ic]And Azelf

[i]The journalist was also give the honor of naming the cave. Thus the cave came to the known as the Cave of Being. 

[i]The journalist may have given a farewell to the people of the village once he had finished what he did, but they never did forget what he had done for them. The rumors of the cave became more than rumors but a thing of tradition. People from all around the world came to visit this new mini-monument. The once small village came to grow into Floccesy Town thanks to the many influential people that came to visit the area. 

[i]It became the place where “prophecy flocks”. The place where the world smartest people could come and be at peace in a place where the people there wanted to be more enlightened just like they did. 

[i]All thanks to a journalist from Sinnoh who wanted to investigate a “silly folktale”. 

[ci]...

“The end.” Cheren concluded with a huff. 

“What happened to him after he did all that?” Nate asked. 

Cheren tiredly chuckled, “Legend has it he kept on looking for different mysteries that needed solving.” He stood up from the log he was sitting in and stretched out his stiff muscles, “That’s enough of that. Everyone pack up. It’s time for bed.”

The class let out a harmonious sigh and got to packing up. Every student there was talking all about the legend Cheren had just spent the night telling them about. Many even wanted to go looking for cool hidden lands themselves. To be frank, it was way too adorable than it had any right to be. The trip back to the hotel was difficult, as maybe kids were about to pass out from dreariness.  
Cheren had to start lifting children on his back to get them all back safely. Herald also helped out with the sleepy children. With some considerable effort, everyone was safely put in bed for the night. Herald had just left the building and was surprised to see Cheren still up. He was sitting outside the hotel in deep thought. He took the seat next to Cheren to make sure he was doing alright. 

“What’s troubling ya’ Cheren?” Herald asked, making sure his voice wasn’t as booming as usual. 

“Huh?... Oh. Nothing much.”

Herald gave Cheren a suspicious look. He didn’t buy it, “Really now? You look like you’re shifting through some real stuff in that head of yours.”

“It’s just, how am I supposed to explain it... you remember Nate right?”

“That little springy boy you told me to keep an eye on? Yea I remember him. Is it about what he said tonight?”

“No, it has nothing to do with that. You see... Alder gave me some very specific instructions to learn everything I can about him with without being to pushy. I feel awful about it. He’s my student. It feels wrong to use my status like this against him you know? I know he’s already dealing with a lot personal problems of his own and I don’t want to become another one of his issues.” Cheren mused. 

“Understandable. Why not just tell Alder you’re not interested in doing such a thing?”

“Sadly it’s not that easy. Alder is still legally the champion. With my position as gym leader approaching fast, I can’t make the one person who can deny my that job upset. And of course this happens to be the one thing he’s stubborn about.”

“Hm... a tricky situation indeed. Why does he want you to do watch this kid anyways?”

Cheren buried his hands into his palms and groaned. He hated having to do this, he felt as is he was lying constantly. Even so he deserved an answer even if it only told half the story. 

Cheren took in a deep breath, then began to speak, “He is a kid like no other with a heart that means no wrong. Even so... there are things that struck the league about him as potentially... threatening? It is a complicated situation to be sure, but given what we know about him, we have every right to fully understand this kid’s situation as it could very well bring a huge danger to life as we know it.”

**Author's Note:**

> For anyone who may be curious, the ending is a bit of a small teaser for a very big project I am working on that involves some of the characters here.   
> When it’ll come out, I don’t know as current the story is going through a hard rewrite but it is definitely being made.


End file.
